Airbags for motor vehicles have become ubiquitous in passenger vehicles. These airbags are installed at strategic points in the passenger compartment of a vehicle and, in the event of a collision, are rapidly inflated with gas so that they act as an energy absorbing barrier between the vehicle occupant and an interior surface of the passenger compartment (e.g., steering wheel, dashboard, or windows). For example, side curtain airbags typically are installed within one or more of the pillars of the vehicle so that they provide protection during roll-over or side impact collisions. With the advent of such airbags, manufacturers began coating the airbag textile to modify the gas permeability of the textile, enabling the airbags manufactured from the textile to stay inflated for longer periods of time and provided the needed protection during the collision event.
There are many types of coating compositions used to produce such coated textiles, but one class of coating composition that is quite popular is a dispersion of a polymer in a suitable medium (e.g., aqueous medium). And while these dispersion-based systems are popular, they are not free from drawbacks and difficulties unlike solvent based systems.
In view of the foregoing, it can be seen that a need remains for coating compositions and coated airbag textiles that can meet the demanding needs of the automotive airbag industry while addressing some of the problems inherent in current coating compositions and coated textiles. Applicants believe that the coating composition and coated airbag described in the present application meet this need.